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From the air, Andros, the largest island in the Bahamas, looks like it was caught in the crossfire of a mafia hit. It's riddled with water filled holes, caverns and caves. They're in the forest, in the bights, in the bays and in the ocean. And, one of them, The Great Blue Hole, which is in the ocean, has a monster in it. Well, kind of. To be honest, I'm not really one that gets a thrill of squeezing through tight spaces in caves, but I love passing through that curtain of darkness that marks the opening of a cavern. When you pass through from the light, it literally looks like you're swimming into a pitch black hole. The gaping maw of the Great Blue Hole is only in about 40 feet, but once you push into the inside the massive "sky light" room, you'll find a tumble-tossed array of huge boulders, a 50-foot crack where light fights its way in. You explore to about 110 feet, then slowly ascend back to the opening. Along the way, if it's your first time, the guides have saved a spectacular sight. Silhouetted against the bright blue light of the opening, a rock that juts up from the others looks like a monster in profile. Complete with opening mouth and an evil looking eye that will always win a stare off. I'm sure in some fantasy-imaged world this rock comes alive after the sun has long set and terrorizes the equally spectacular reef off Andros. But, for me, it's enough to see the monster and know, for sure, that I can easily escape its gaze.
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